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Arsenal confirm first match with fans for nine months under Tier 2 restrictions
Arsenal will be the first Premier League club to welcome back fans when they face Rapid Vienna in the Europa League
Arsenal have confirmed that 2,000 fans will be allowed into their Europa League game with Rapid Vienna next Thursday after the government confirmed London’s new tier 2 restrictions.
Arsenal will be the first Premier League club to welcome supporters back into grounds since Brighton, with tier two restrictions allowing 2,000 supporters at an outdoor venue from 2 December.
A club statement read: “We're delighted to confirm that we will be safely welcoming 2,000 supporters to our Europa League home match against Rapid Vienna on Thursday, 3 December.
"It’s been almost nine long months since we had fans in attendance at Emirates Stadium and our matches have simply not been the same without you.
READ MORE: Premier League fixtures in December confirmed as fans return
“While we appreciate that reduced capacity matches will be far from being ‘back to normal’, we can’t wait to welcome our fans back home for what will be a historic moment for the club.
“This follows the UK government announcement that Emirates Stadium is located in a Tier 2 area under the latest Covid-19 guidelines.”
Arsenal will allocate tickets to supporters on a “first come, first served” basis, with a priority sale only eligible to Gold and Premium Members who made their initial payment and registered for the ballot in September.
The sale window will open at 9am on Saturday 28 November, but tickets will be capped at four per booking running from £15 in the lower tier to £45 for club level, with prices of £7.40 and £22.50 respectively for disabled fans.
Gold members will only be able to purchase tickets in the lower tier with club level reserved for Premium members, and the club reminded those in the latter category to ensure that all ticket holders fall inside the same household or support bubble as they will be sat together at the same table with food and drink table service provided.
Once Arsenal home games resume in the Premier League club will revert to a ballot system for fans to apply.
Manchester United will be the first Premier League side to play at home following the relaxation of the national lockdown, but the city’s presence in tier 3 means that the club have been forced to keep Old Trafford closed to the public until coronavirus numbers reduce sufficiently to ease some of the restrictions.
The following round of Premier League action will see West Ham host Manchester United in the first Premier League game to take place with fans since March, which will take place with up to 2,000 inside the London Stadium at 5:30pm on Saturday. Chelsea’s late kick-off against Leeds United will see the same number of supporters allowed into Stamford Bridge.
The north London derby will also take place in front of fans with Spurs able to allow 2,000 supporters inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday afternoon, with the same number at Liverpool’s evening kick-off against Wolves and Monday night’s game between Brighton and Southampton at the Amex.
However, games at Aston Villa, Burnley, Manchester City, West Bromwich Albion and Sheffield United will all be held behind closed doors due to tier 3 restrictions.
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